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Posted by: siverson Oct 23 2011, 08:20 PM

Has anyone ever tried *removing* the Brad Meyeur longitudinal kit? Did it work without creating even more problems?

-Steve

Posted by: siverson Oct 23 2011, 08:20 PM

(It just seems like the Engman kit and other tricks are the way to go now.)

Posted by: Garold Shaffer Oct 23 2011, 08:35 PM

I have to ask if you have one of his kits installed why do you want remove it? Is it not doing what it is supposed to do?

I have Brad's kit on both my cars. I like them over the others as they tie into the rear suspension pickup points. Now I haven't tried the others setup or been in a 914 that has one of the other kits installed so my opinion is biased I guess.

Posted by: iamchappy Oct 23 2011, 08:41 PM

I have both the Engman inner kit and the Meyeur outer on mine.... I can see how it can hurt having the extra support.

Posted by: siverson Oct 23 2011, 08:41 PM

Yeah, I think it's ok, but I'm doing a bunch of work on my car now (had some front end damage) so "while I'm in there" I'm considering removing this and installing the Engman kit.

Also, now that I have some miles on mine (about 25k) and lots of horsepower/tires, the chassis is loosening up again. I suspect (I have not confirmed) that the spot welds that this kit attaches to has loosened up and so it's a lot less effective than when I first installed it.

I may just end up leaving it, but then that's 50+ (? I don't recall, but it was heavy) extra pounds stuck on the car.

-Steve

Posted by: siverson Oct 23 2011, 08:42 PM

> I can see how it can hurt having the extra support.

True, other than weight. If I recall, that thing was a beast when I installed it!

-Steve

Posted by: hot_shoe914 Oct 23 2011, 09:03 PM

Try asking Brad, only makes sense to me.

Posted by: Montreal914 Oct 23 2011, 09:06 PM

I think it is more like 30lbs.

Posted by: shoguneagle Oct 23 2011, 10:58 PM

Ask Brad!! He developed the long which I have on my car along with Engman's interior kit. Love both of them. The car does not flex and is true to the handling; I have a 3.2 1987 Carrera Sixer and I enjoy the car setup. Mostly street driving wiith 911 Carrera front (22mm sway bar and torsion bars), red koni shocks, turbo steering, red konis on back with 200# springs, transaxle built for the 3.2 engine, plus numerous other items.

I do not produce the power iamchappy does but it does move; I would think twice before removing. If welds are breaking, then make sure the item is welded for stress and strength.

Both Brad Mayuer and Engman produce excellent product and service.

Posted by: siverson Oct 23 2011, 11:44 PM

Yeah, maybe I'm over thinking this. It's not that big of weight penalty and likely still provides some stiffness. I'll probably just install both.

-Steve

Posted by: Vacca Rabite Oct 24 2011, 08:01 AM

Unless the kit was welded over rusty metal as a stopgap, don't remove it. Add the Engman kit. Sound like you need all the help you can get.

Look for cracks though! Since the longs are not flexing other parts of the car are taking the strain. The flex you feel may be the car rending itself at the engine shelf or somewhere else. If it feels like it is flexing you need to find out where.
Zach

Posted by: rick 918-S Oct 24 2011, 10:14 AM

Both kits do different things. Brads kit will do a better job helping the chassis with sag, (parallel rigidity) while Marks kit will aid in torsional forces and help avoid or repair the chassis crack that we sometimes see next to the tip of the "E" brake handle on the inner long. Both are good

Posted by: Dave_Darling Oct 24 2011, 05:27 PM

Any weight they add is in the least harmful place possible--inside the wheelbase, down very low.

--DD

Posted by: Elliot Cannon Oct 24 2011, 05:59 PM

When you weld the kit in, enlarge the holes to 1/2 or 5/8. It makes for a longer stronger weld instead of a dot.


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Posted by: Brett W Oct 25 2011, 07:23 AM

Something I think many people overlook when upgrading the cars is, unlike a coupe or sedan, the only thing really connecting the front and rear halves of the car is two six inch boxes made out of really thin sheet metal. Anything you can do to increase the strength of that box is good. The Mayer kit can add some material to those boxes thus increasing the strength. I would leave it and just go over some over some of the welds to remelt them if you feel they are "loosening up"

Posted by: Engman Oct 25 2011, 03:20 PM

Actually, there is a correct size for the hole. My earlier kits were on the small side of this. I went to several shows and different people to research the right size of hole. Too large a hole creates a heat affected zone that can cause stress cracking of the underlaying material. The holes in the current version 5 of my kit were made larger as per the shops and builders I talked with. A 1/2" hole is OK but it does mean that you are putting more heat into the long and have to take more time to weld it as you have to move the heat around, and sometime let things cool, to avoid warping the long.

Mark

Posted by: Drums66 Oct 25 2011, 03:34 PM

......I think you're(Siverson) going about it the right way!.......ask somebody
neutral not the maker?(engman or brad)
(interesting)

Posted by: siverson Oct 25 2011, 03:45 PM

Thanks for the input. I'll definitely check out the car more to see where it is flexing.

I notice that the door gap changes now when I jack it up. The top gains about 1.5mm - not much, but you can definitely tell I difference. I don't *think* it changed when I first installed the kit, but maybe I wasn't paying close attention.

And I'm also pretty sure the BM Kit welds have not loosened up, I suspect the original factory spot welds have, but I'll take a closer look...

-Steve

Posted by: Elliot Cannon Oct 25 2011, 04:47 PM

I have a dvd done by a long time auto body guy and he suggests that you keep a compressed air blower handy and after welding 1/2 inch or so to then cool it off with the compressed air. You can keep it cooler and don't have to wait so long between welds.